Monthly Archives: April 2015

Sleep has a role to play in the Ramayana, both in the life of the hero’s brother Laxman and the villain’s brother Kumbhakarna. On the day of his coronation, the crown prince, Rama is sent into exile for fourteen years. … Continue reading →

Yayati, an ancestor of the Pandavas was an ancient king married to Devayani, the daughter of the powerful sage Shukracharya. The couple had children and apparently were happy together, or so Devayani thought. But Yayati, had also fallen in love … Continue reading →

XANADU : an idyllic, exotic, luxurious place, and swargaloka situated on top of mount Meru, the home of the gods was just that. But there was a time, when Indra, the King of Gods, thought that swargaloka was not grand … Continue reading →

As a child and well into my youth and adulthood, some of the stories in the epics made me very uncomfortable. It had to do with the way women and other marginalized sections of society were treated. I will be … Continue reading →

Ratnakar was a dreaded highway dacoit. Fierce and ruthless, he robbed and often killed people passing through the forest. One day Narada, the sage was passing by; Ratnakar stops him and asks him to handover all that he has. Ratnakar … Continue reading →

I wonder, what is the use of Shatrughna in the Ramayana, He hardly has anything to do. Similarly in the Mahabharat, the youngest two of the Pandavas, Nakul and Sahadev, they don’t bring much to the epics. As for the … Continue reading →

In the Ramayana, the war is between Ravana the asura (demonised) king and Ram the mortal(deified) king. The war is seen as a war between the forces of good and evil, with Rama standing for all that is good and … Continue reading →